Australia's premier city is the oldest settlement in Australia, the economic powerhouse of the nation and the country's capital in everything but name. Built on the shores of the stunning Port Jackson, you would have to die and go to heaven before you see a more spectacular setting for a city. It's a vital, self-regarding metropolis, exuding both a devil-may-care urbanity and a slavish obsession with global fads. Preparations for the 2000 Olympic Games are now underway as the city strives to bring its civic life on a par with its natural charms.

Map of Sydney (23K)

Map of Around Sydney (11K)

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The Sydney area was the ancestral home of the Daruk tribe, whose territory extended from Botany Bay to Pittwater. There are some 2000 Aboriginal rock engraving sites in the Sydney area, and many of Sydney's suburbs have Aboriginal names. The city of Sydney began life as a penal colony in 1788, and for the next 60 years received the unwanted, persecuted and criminal elements of British society. Despite its brutal beginnings, the city's mixture of pragmatic egalitarianism and plain indifference has transformed it into a thriving multicultural society. Sydney now attracts the majority of Australia's immigrants and the city's predominantly Anglo-Irish heritage has been revitalised by large influxes of Italian, Lebanese, Turkish, Greek, Chinese and Vietnamese. The city has a large and vocal gay community centred on Oxford St.

Kings Cross is the city's budget accommodation centre and has a well developed travellers' grapevine. The less stressful alternatives are Glebe, Bondi Beach and Manly. The international hotels are concentrated in the city and the Rocks. There are heaps of good restaurants in Darlinghurst, Kings Cross, Paddington and Glebe, and a few around Circular Quay. For cafés, try Oxford and Victoria Sts in Darlinghurst, Stanley St in East Sydney, King St in Newtown or Norton St in Leichhardt. Sydney's theatres are scattered around the edge of the CBD, the Opera House is on the edge of Circular Quay, the mainstream cinema complexes are on the ugly neon strip of George St. The best nightlife is centred on Oxford St and Kings Cross. Louts in the city centre on Friday and Saturday night can make it a less than enjoyable experience. The Rocks can be fun, but the area is overtly aimed at tourists. http://www.lonelyplanet.com/dest/aust/syd.htm#env Environment Attractions Activities Events Getting Around Lonely Planet Guides Travellers' Reports on Australia On-line Info

Environment

The centre of Sydney is on the south shore of the harbour, about 7km inland from the harbour heads. The CBD has become a mini Manhattan of skyscrapers vying for dominance and harbour views, but its relentlessness is softened by shady Hyde Park and the Domain parkland to the east, Darling Harbour to the west and the main harbour to the north. The Sydney Harbour Bridge links the city centre with the satellite CBD of North Sydney and the suburbs of the North Shore.

The city has a population of 3.7 million and is growing fast. The inner city areas of Woolloomooloo, East Sydney, Darlinghurst, Surry Hills, Paddington, Newtown, Glebe and Balmain are an interesting mix of bohemian, gentrified, gay and traditional working class suburbs. There are three distinct socio-geographic areas outside the inner suburbs: the wealthy eastern suburbs stretching from Kings Cross to South Head; the middle class family-oriented North Shore; and the less wealthy and much disparaged western suburbs, stretching inland for over 50km to the foothills of the Blue Mountains.

The harbour is the focal point of the city, and its beaches, coves, bays and waterside parks offer welcome release from the rigours of urban life. Criss-crossed by ferries and carpeted by yachts on weekends, it is both the city playground and a major port. The string of ocean beaches on the north and south shores offer dramatic cliff scenery, great waves and a close-up of Aussie beach culture at its best.

Coogee Surf Life Saving Club - babewatch possie (17K)

Sydney is blessed with a temperate climate and averages summer temperatures of around 25 degrees centigrade. It can get up into the 40s on a hot day and high humidity can make it oppressive, but torrential downpours often break the heat between October and March. Winters are cool rather than cold. The best times to visit are the shoulder seasons of spring and autumn, especially around March-April or October-November. Beach lovers unperturbed by the hazards of lizard-skin and melanomas should come between December and February. http://www.lonelyplanet.com/dest/aust/syd.htm#attr Attractions

Sydney Harbour

The harbour is the defining characteristic of the city. Its multiple sandstone headlands, dramatic cliffs, rocky islands and stunning bays and beaches, make it one of the most beautiful stretches of water in the world. Officially called Port Jackson, the harbour stretches some 20km inland to join the mouth of the Parramatta River. The most scenic area is on the ocean side of the bridge. The Sydney Harbour National Park protects the scattered pockets of bushland around the harbour and offers good walking tracks. The best way to experience the harbour is to go sailing, but if you're lacking nautical skills there are plenty of ways to enjoy it. Try catching the Manly ferry, swimming at Nielsen Park, walking from Manly to Spit Bridge, having a drink at Watsons Bay, dining with a view at Rose Bay, Balmoral or Circular Quay, or cruising to the heads on the Bounty.

Sydney Harbour Bridge from the Rocks (18K)

The Rocks

The Rocks is the oldest, quaintest part of Sydney. Today it is unrecognisable from the squalid, overcrowded and plague-ridden place it used to be. Reinvented by visionaries in the building industry and the trade union movement in the 1970s, the Rocks is now a sanitised, historical tourist precinct, full of cobbled streets, colonial buildings and stuffed Koala bears. If you ignore the kitsch, a stroll around the Rocks can be delightful. Attractions include the weekend market, the Earth Exchange geological and mining museum, and numerous craft shops and art galleries. But it's the old buildings, alleyways and historic facades that attract most visitors. Try exploring the less developed areas in the contiguous suburb of Millers Point, which has not sacrificed its community life to the tourist dollar. Check out the Lord Nelson Brewery Hotel and The Hero of Waterloo, two of Sydney's oldest pubs.

Warehouses, The Rocks (23K)

Circular Quay

Circular Quay is built around Sydney Cove and is considered by many to be the focal point of the city. The first European settlement in Australia grew around the Tank Stream which now runs underground into the harbour here. For many years this was the shipping centre of Sydney, but it's now both a commuting hub and a recreational space, combining ferry quays, a railway station and the Overseas Passenger Terminal with harbour walkways, restaurants, buskers, parks, the Museum of Contemporary Art and, of course, the Sydney Opera House.

Sydney's skyline from Circular Quay (17K)

Contemporary ...um...wall, Museum of Contemporary Art (17K)

Sydney Opera House

Australia's most recognisable icon is dramatically situated on the eastern headland of Circular Quay. It's famous sail-like, shell-like roofs were inspired by palm fronds, according to architect Jorn Utzon, but may remind you of turtles engaging in sexual congress. The Opera House is so unique that it has been photographed a zillion times, appears on an army of cheap t-shirts, every other Sydney postcard and decorates the frames of Dame Edna's dramatic glasses. It was built between 1959 and 1973, but plagued with construction delays and political difficulties which culminated in the resignation of Utzon in 1966. Although some visitors are disappointed by the interior, designed by a consortium of Australians after Utzon quit, it's a truly memorable place to see a performance or to sit at one of its outdoor cafes with a bottle of white wine and watch harbour life go by. The Opera House hosts theatre, classical music, ballet and film, as well as the seasonal opera performances. There is free music on the prow of the Opera House on weekends and a craft market on the forecourt on Sunday.

Macquarie St

Sydney's greatest concentration of early public buildings grace Macquarie St, many of them commissioned by Governor Macquarie and designed by the convict architect Francis Greenway. The most impressive are the elegant, two-storey, verandahed Parliament House, Sydney Hospital, the Mint Building, the exquisite Hyde Park Barracks, St James Church and the voluminous State Library. The Barracks and the Mint are now museums, the library hosts exhibitions and there are tours of both the hospital and Parliament House. Macquarie St is the eastern boundary of the CBD and borders the Domain and the Royal Botanic Gardens. It runs from Hyde Park to Circular Quay.

The Domain, Art Gallery & Botanic Gardens

The Domain is a large grassy area east of Macquarie St which was set aside by Governor Phillip for public recreation. Today it is used by city workers for lunchtime sports and as a place to escape the bustle of the city. On Sunday afternoons, it's the gathering place for impassioned soapbox speakers, who do their best to entertain or enrage their listeners. It is also the venue for free events held during the festival of Sydney in January and the popular Carols by Candlelight at Christmas. The Art Gallery of NSW is in the north eastern corner of the Domain. It has excellent permanent exhibitions of Australian, European, Japanese and tribal art, and has some inspired temporary exhibits.

The Royal Botanic Gardens encompass Farm Cove, the first bay east of Circular Quay, and include the site of the colony's first vegetable patch. They contain a magnificent collection of South Pacific plant life, tropical displays in the Arc and Pyramid glasshouses, and a beautiful, old-fashioned formal rose garden. The spectacularly located gardens are a favoured spot for family picnics and wedding photographs.

Darling Harbour

This huge waterfront tourist and leisure park comprises walkways, gardens, museums, an aquarium, convention centre, casino, eateries and shops. It was once a thriving dockland area, but it declined to the level of an urban eyesore before being reinvented as Darling Harbour in the 1980s by a combination of vision, planning, politicking, forbearance and huge amounts of cash. The emphasis is on casual fun and enjoyment of the kind appreciated by families with small children and coach tourists. The highlights are the Sydney Aquarium, the Australian National Maritime Museum, the water sculpture, the Chinese Garden, the massive IMAX cinema, and the nearby Powerhouse Museum, Sydney's most spectacular museum.

Bondi Beach

Bondi Beach is the grand dame of Sydney's beaches with a magnificent sweep of sand and a never-ending series of majestic rollers crashing into the shallow. The suburb of Bondi Beach is an eclectic mix of ice cream parlours, designer cafes, greasy fish & chips joints, kosher shops and surf fashion stores. The seafront promenade and pavilion have been given a welcome facelift; car parking and fixing the offshore sewage outlets remain the only problems.

Around Sydney

Ku-Ring-Gai-Chase National Park

Ku-Ring-Gai Chase National Park covers 150 sq km of sandstone bushland at the mouth of the Hawkesbury River, 24km north of Sydney. The park has over 100km of shoreline, plenty of forest and wildlife, a number of walking tracks and some magnificent Aboriginal rock art. Elevated parts of the park offer superb views across Pittwater towards the northernmost suburbs of Sydney.

Royal National Park

The Royal National Park, 35km south of city, is the oldest gazetted national park in the world. The sea of low scrub which covered the sandstone plateau in the north of the park was devastated by the 1994 bushfires, but the forested river valleys and the beaches were unscathed. The park is dissected by the Hacking River and there are riverside picnic and boat hiring facilities at Audley. There's a spectacular 26km coastal track stretching the length of the park, which is accessible from Bundeena. It passes the lovely lagoon beach at Wattamolla, and the popular surfing spot at Garie Beach. The best views are from the southern boundary of the park overlooking Bulli from the edge of the Illawarra escarpment. http://www.lonelyplanet.com/dest/aust/syd.htm#act Activities

The harbour offers sailing, canoeing, and windsurfing opportunities. Spit Bridge and Balmoral are the best places to hire equipment. Good surf beaches include Bondi and Tamarama on the south shore and Narrabeen, North Avalon and Palm Beach on the north shore. Manly is the centre of Sydney's diving scene. The harbour beaches at Camp Cove, Neilsen Park, Balmoral and Chinaman's Beach offer picturesque swimming, but no waves. If you want to go bodysurfing, head for Bondi, Tamarama and Bronte on the south shore, and just about any of the beaches lining the 30km stretch of coast from Manly to Palm Beach on the north shore.

There are plenty of coastal bushwalks in the Royal National, Ku-Ring-Gai Chase and Sydney Harbour national parks. The 10km Manly Scenic Walkway follows the harbour from the north shore beachside suburb to Spit Bridge on Middle Harbour. Another spectacular but much shorter walk is along the cliffs from Bronte to Bondi Beach. You can hire horses to ride in Centennial Park, the large park between Paddington and Bondi. The park vies with Bondi and Manly promenades as the favourite jogging and rollerblading spot. http://www.lonelyplanet.com/dest/aust/syd.htm#event Events

The huge Festival of Sydney takes up most of January. It's the umbrella for a number of events from open air concerts in the Domain, to street theatre and fireworks. The Great Ferry Boat Race and the more serious Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race are also in January. The outlandish Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras is in February/March and should not be missed. The more traditional 12-day Royal Easter Show brings the country to the city. The Sydney Film Festival takes place in June, and the 14km City to Surf Run in August. The Rugby League Grand Final is in September and the Manly Jazz Festival is held in October. The city's Christmas orphans traditionally gather on Bondi Beach on Christmas Day, drinking up a storm and keeping the life-savers and police busier than they would like to be on a public holiday. After a short nap, they do it all over again on New Year's Eve. Those scared of the water usually do their end-of-the-year hellraising in The Rocks or Kings Cross.

Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras (21K) http://www.lonelyplanet.com/dest/aust/syd.htm#ga Getting Around

Sydney has a good train network, including an underground city centre loop. It's the fastest way of getting around but not exactly the most scenic. There are some gaps in the train network, notably the coast on the south shore and all of the north shore east of the Harbour Bridge. The bus network is extensive, but can be slow. There are plenty of fare deals and several hop-on, hop-off buses specifically designed for visitors who hate walking or for those who have no sense of direction. The most pleasant way to get around is by ferry. A trip on the Manly Ferry is the best way to experience the harbour if you can't charm someone into taking you sailing. The Monorail is an elevated toy train that shuttles uselessly between the city and Darling Harbour. Sydneysiders either love its sub-Bladerunner futurism or thinks it's a godawful eyesore, depending on their aesthetic bent. Taxis are plentiful and car and bike hire are widely available. http://www.lonelyplanet.com/dest/aust/syd.htm#lp Lonely Planet Guides

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